Fair Work Action Plan: indicator report 2025

2. The Fair Work outcome measurement framework

The Fair Work Action Plan contained a range of actions intended to support delivery of the Scottish Government’s Fair Work objectives. Progress towards these objectives is monitored through the measurement framework outlined in the Fair Work Evidence Plan^[1].

As there are several outcomes articulated in the Fair Work Action Plan, there is not a single measure that captures the different aspects of Fair Work. This means that groups of indicators are used to monitor progress in these areas.

The measurement framework currently contains 17 indicators. These include indicators that may have a direct impact on a Fair Work outcome ( ‘attributional’ indicators). They also include indicators of progress towards Fair Work aspirations where the Fair Work Action Plan’s initiatives may make a positive contribution.

2.1 Advice on the framework

The medium-term outcome indicators provide useful information, but there are some key points to bear in mind when considering the data and their trends over time:

• Individual indicators should be viewed in conjunction with others for that outcome, rather than in isolation.
• Indicators will not fully capture all dimensions of the outcomes.
• There are time lags in the data underpinning the indicators, and gaps in data coverage. These will be influenced by the methods, timeliness and coverage of data collection. As a result, the time periods presented for each indicator vary and for some indicators will only cover the early period of the Fair Work Action Plan.
• Some indicators are ‘lagging indicators’ when compared to activity: the effects of specific policy actions may not become apparent for a period of time after implementation, even if attributional.
• This report draws on publicly available information.
• Some indicators will evolve over time as new data becomes available or existing data becomes obsolete e.g. as Fair Start Scotland closed to new starts from April 2024, these figures will not be updated in future.

The trends and performance of different indicators will be influenced by the wider economic and social environment. The implementation of the Fair Work Action plan has come against a backdrop of substantial economic and fiscal uncertainty. The Scottish economy has experienced significant shocks in recent years, resulting from EU exit, Covid-19, and the cost of living crisis. Factors such as these will have influenced the environment surrounding Fair Work activities in recent years and may create headwinds or tailwinds for delivering activities and achieving outcomes in the medium term.

Data availability for some of the medium term outcomes indicators is currently affected by a number of factors including data quality issues particularly in relation to data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) Annual Population Survey (APS). Where data from this source is used, it is informed by Scottish Government’s Quality Assessment of the Office for National Statistics Labour Force Survey and Annual Population Survey data for Scotland, which was published earlier this year. Further details on the challenges associated with ONS Annual Population Survey data and what the Scottish Government is doing to address them is contained in Annex B. Annex C provides more information on the indicators affected by the data issues relating to ONS Annual Population Survey data as well as those affected by other challenges.